She Wore A Tracker Jacker Badge
by loob88
Summary: It is the 28th Annual Hunger Games. A brother and a sister from District 6 are chosen at the reaping. They both know that one of them-maybe both of them-are going to die. But, when a surprising rule change in the games happens, what will become of the twins?
1. Chapter 1

I winced as Ma brushed my sanguine hair into place. Coran, my twin brother, smirked and Ma shot him a look.

"You'll be next, son." She growled. Emmett stood up straight. He smoothed down his best trousers-Ma refused to let him wear hunting slacks for such an important event-and rubbed his hands together. Ma gave my hair one last final tug and it set. She tied the ribbon at the back of my dress and I moved to the side. Coran stepped forward and took my place.

"Ouch!" He grunted as Ma scraped the comb across his scalp. soon, his hair had gone from messy to almost perfect.

"Come on then, kids. You have to go to the reaping." Ma muttered. She grabbed us both by our arms and dragged us out of the house.

"I'm doomed." I whispered to myself.

0o0o0o0

The town hall clock struck two and we were roped into our pens. A peacekeeper came and took a blood sample from each of us. Our Capitol Representative, Julia Figworth, bounded up to the stage and did the usual welcoming speech. Then, it was time to pick the name out of the tubs. Some unlucky sap was going to be picked out.

But, as Julia read the female and male names out, my heart stopped.

_It was me and Coran!_

Trembling with fear, we made our way up to the stage, clutching each other's hands. His face was blank, showing no expression whatsoever. Mine was contorted with sadness. I could see Ma's pale, ashen face in the crowd. She was going to lose one or both of her children. But nobody else cares. They're all there to watch the tributes leave.

And we did. In silence-so we could maintain our dignity-we walked off and ino the train. Our mentor, Claudia, was waiting for us. I remembered her well, from all of the other Hunger Games. She's mentored us to victory a few times. She won when she was only 12, using a stick and some arrowheads. Seeing her in person made my heart leap.

"You're Claudia Huckleberry." I gasped when I saw her.

"And you're Lara Bates. I've been expecting you." She purred back, squinting her cat-like bronze eyes at me.

"I'm Coran. Her twin brother." Coran put in. Claudia batted him away.

"You two aren't very elegant, are you? You're supposed to be refined. Well, I mustn't grumble. The stylists are bound to do a good job with you." She clicked her tongue. I gave her a fierce glare. She eased her gloves off, revealing two pale green hands with long purple fingernails.

"Let's see who the other contestants are then." She muttered. She pressed a green finger down onto the table and a computer sprang up. On the screen were all of the contestants, including me and Coran. Some of the contestants weren't very memorable, but some were. The 12-year-old from District 4. The one-armed girl from District 8. The pale boy from District 11 with a scar down his left cheek. The feeble girl from District 10. They didn't look like they were going to fight. It was the others I was worried about. They were big and tough girls and boys, most of them my age. Some of them were volunteers, others just ones who had their names picked out and hoped they were lucky enough not to get chosen. But I only got to see half of it as the train stopped outside the building where we were allowed to bid friends and family one last final goodbye.

0o0o0o0

Ma clutched the hands of both me and Coran as she sobbed.

"Kids, do me proud. One of you must win. You're my precious babies. I don't want you to die." She wailed. I gave her a hug, as did Coran. His tear-streaked face contrasted his stoic expression. He was obviously trying to be brave for both of us. I didn't have it in me to be brave. I sat there, sobbing like a child. I didn't want to go in the arena. I didn't want to watch my brother get chopped to pieces or, even worse, have to kill him myself. I could tell that he didn't want the same thing to happen to me, either. But we both knew that at least one of us was going to die in the arena.

But we were going to die fighting.


	2. Chapter 2

Coran brushed back his hair and I smiled at him. We waved goodbye to Mother and we entered the train. Claudia sat there, her fingers exposed. The computer was still up there. Claudia was watching the videos of all the kids exiting the train. I looked out of the windows of our train. The buildings were sparkling, which told me that we were near the Capitol. Claudia pulled a small microphone from out of her hair.

"District 6 tributes entering the Capitol in approximately 7 minutes." She muttered into it. I was still staring out of the window, as was Coran.

"We're almost at the Capitol now, sis." He whispered. He let out a sigh. The train as almost at the station now. The Capitol buildings were glimmering, as if they were made from some form of crystalline substance. Capitol people were walking casually down golden roads, their faces shaded by parasols of all shapes and sizes. Some of them stopped and stared as our train pulled up. Their hairs and skins were dyed all shades. As we stepped out of the train, a woman with her skin dyed pale yellow greeted us. She reminded me of a Tracker Jacker. She had black hair, black lips and a yellow dress with black stripes on. The high heels on her shoes had been filed so they were like spikes. As she helped us off the train, she tottered and swayed from side to side, trying to control her balance.

"I am Clora Du Veil, the District 6 stylist. Your temporary home while you are staying in the Capitol is here." She grinned, pointing to a small building covered in glittering topaz tiles. She grabbed Coran and I by the arms and practically hauled us into our home, despite the protests we gave. She flung us into a well-lit room and tossed us both into steamer machines. These were like saunas. Then, we were swirled into a shower. I pressed a button to my right and my body (and clothes) got covered in a lavender foam. My garments were whipped off my body and the foam vanished. I was quickly dried and put into a random outfit. It was a lilac dress, which reminded me of the dress Ma gave me.

"it's beautiful." I muttered to myself. I exited the complex machinery, and saw Coran standing there. He smiled.

"You look good." He grinned.

"Thanks. You don't look too bad yourself. Now, it says on the wall here that we have to go to the All Districts Dinner Party tonight." I sighed, pointing to a note on the wall. I looked Coran up and down. He was in a cream jumper and jeans. The sanguine dye had been washed from his hair, revealing a mousy brown that I hadn't seen for years. My sanguine dye had also come out. I examined my new hair colour in the mirror. The natural ginger I had been trying to hide for years had been freed. We both sighed. Looking at ourselves, we realised that we both looked much older than 18. Then again, everybody had said that, for 18-year-olds, we looked exceptionally old.

"What ya thinking of?" Clora interrupted. I shook my head. She pointed to the note on the wall and grabbed both mine and Coran's arms again. This time, we were hauled into a huge feasting hall. Kids from every district were there. On the wall in front of us was a quote from the Treaty Of Treason.

"As penance for the sins of the districts, they each must offer up one male child and one female child between the ages of 12 and 18." It read. I let out a sigh. The other districts were filing in now. I could see them, all in their outfits. A District 10 girl came and sat by me.

"I'm Suri." She muttered.

"I'm Lara." I replied. The servants brought our food over. I could see Coran conversing with a District 8 kid. Suri smiled at me.

"I'm from District 10. I'm a volunteer. My big sister was going to take part in the games but Mama made me volunteer. She loves my big sister too dearly. I'm only 12." She sighed. She sipped her soup, and I sipped mine. We finished it quickly. I heard an order from the speaker telling us to change places, and I ended up sitting next to a District 5 girl.

"What's your name? I'm Lara." I smiled politely.

"I'm Chevy. I don't speak to kids from districts other than my own." She growled. I nibbled my main course. It tasted beautiful. Just as I was finishing off the last potato and moving on to the carrots, the same order was called again and I ended up next to a district 4 boy. He looked really tired and exhausted. He stroked his platinum blonde hair absent-mindedly.

"My name's Clark. What's yours?" He asked.

"Lara. I'm from District 6, AKA the transport district. Me and my brother were chosen." I sighed.

"Oh, you mean the kid with the mousy brown hair, Coran? You guys must be twins. I was sat next to him last time. I have a little sister who's 9. Her name's Rose. She lives in a District Home. Mom and Dad died in a fire when I was 10 and she was 1. I'm 18 now. I feel sorry for her. I mean, I can barely fight. Poor Rose. She MUST know her brother's not gonna last long out there." Clark grunted. I ate the rest of my food and the desserts came over. It looked like Eton Mess. I licked my lips. Clark did, too. We both ate ours slowly.

"So, what's your chariot gonna be like tonight? Mine...Well, I dunno. last year the District 4 chariot was in the shape of a fish. Our horses were turquoise with shells in their manes and tails." Clark enquired.

"Who knows? Last year, the District 6 theme was boats. The horses were cream-coloured and the tributes wore sailor suits. I hated that year." I muttered. The speakers ordered us to go into the next room, which we did. Our stylists were there to greet us. Clora, however, was nowhere to be seen.

"Where's Clora?" I asked a woman with aquamarine skin.

"Clora has been taken ill, I'm afraid. Your replacement stylist, Fennel, is over there." The woman gestured to another woman who had pale blue skin. I approached her and she smiled.

"I'm Teal, your new stylist. Follow me into this cubicle. Dearie, you're going to look so beautiful!" She beamed in her Capitol accent. She waddled into a cubicle and I followed her, locking the door behind me. Teal made me undress until I was in nothing more than my underwear and bra.

"Hmmm...You have the perfect physique. You'll fit into the costume perfectly." She grinned. I blushed, and she revealed the outfit. It was a white onesie with faux owl wings attached. I grinned and put it on. It was lightweight, yet beautiful. I grinned thankfully, then beamed as she led me to the chariot. Coran was already there, wearing his costume. He smiled and leaned forwards, petting the snow-white horses. Sudenly, as if by magic, they set off. I closed my eyes. I could hear my heart beat. The crowds were screaming wildly. I felt my legs lift from the chariot and I realised that the wings were moving and I was flying. I let out a gulp and released all the tension in my body. I felt lighter than air. I gave the Capitol people in the crowd a wave. Some of them waved back. One of them threw a rose and I caught it in my teeth. My orb-like eyes focused on it and I spat it into my hand. I flung it back into the crowd ad somebody caught it. They stood up and waved, trying to catch me as I swooped low. I gave several hi-fives and landed back in the chariot, just as it came to a halt.

"That was great!" I beamed to Coran.

But he didn't smile back.


	3. Chapter 3

District 1: Button (girl) and Theo (boy)

District 2: Mimi (girl) and Sorrel (boy)

District 3: Robyn (girl) and Valentine (boy)

District 4: Holle (girl) and Clark (boy)

District 5: Chevy (girl) and Len (boy)

District 6: Lara (girl) and Coran (boy)

District 7: Natsu (girl) and Robin (boy)

District 8: Sylvia (girl) and Cloud (boy)

District 9: Ana (girl) and Paulo (boy)

District 10: Suri (girl) and Jet (boy)

District 11: Midori (girl) and Grey (boy)

District 12: Mirror (girl) and Blue (boy)

That's what flashed up on the screen as Coran and I entered the training room 20 minutes early. Only a couple of kids were there, busy taking part in every training activity possible. I made my way over to a table where a girl from District 12-I distinctly remembered seeing her in the back chariot-was making a bow and arrow. I tried copying her, but I was nowhere as good. Coran was the best at bow making. He had been hunting since the day he turned 8. Then, when Father died, it became less of a hobby and more of a compulsory job. He HAD to do it to feed the family, and the surplus scraps could be traded off at the local Sunday Black Market. That's why we did all our hunting on Saturdays. We'd have one giant meat dinner on a Saturday and the scraps that we truly had no room left for would go to the Black Market in exchange for some beans, carrots, cabbage, lettuce and lard. That would give us enough food until Saturday.

I wondered if things were the same in District 12.

The girl-Mirror was what the screen said she was called-was pretty good at bow making. I assumed she must have been taught how to make them, as you can't just suddenly be good at it.

"Uh...Hi. I'm Lara." I smiled at her.

"The name's Mirror. I come from District 12. I'm 18. You must be the same. You're the District 6 girl that was flying last night. I never forget a face." She grinned back.

"Yeah, I was. Hey, did you leave any parents behind? I left my Mom." I let out a sigh when I mentioned Ma. Mirror nodded.

"I left my Dad and three brothers. Mom died when I was young. Starvation, it was caused by. That's what you get for living in the Seam." She sighed.

"What's the Seam?" I enquired.

"It's a place where most of the miners and their families live. Only the healers get to live in fancy houses. Oh, and the Peacekeepers. The rest of us live in houses-no, barely even hovels. And, if you're wondering how I got so good at bowmaking...Dad taught me to hunt. My brothers, who are 3, 5 and 2, are too young to hunt. My older brother Thad was killed in the last Hunger Games. He used to go out in the woods with me and hunt with me. If we tried hard enough, we could bring back a couple big rabbits, maybe a deer a week." Mirror grunted. I watched her bowmaking technique and copied her carefully. She gave me some help and soon, I had a perfect bow.

"What's your speciality?" She asked.

"Tree Climbing. District 6 has a lot of mad people and I get scared by them. I climb the trees to escape them." I smiled, moving on to the huge artificial tree that the Capitol had planted in the middle of the training centre. I climbed up as fast as I could, then shot back down. 

"No, I mean weapons." Mirror grinned.

"Anything I can get my hands on." I sigh-smiled. Mirror nodded, and then the Capitol called for everybody to return to their temporary homes. I trudged out, muttering my goodbyes. Coran followed me.

"Who was that?" He asked.

"Her name's Mirror and she's a District 12 tribute. Who was that kid you were talking to last night?" I growled.

"That's Theo, the District 1 boy. He's only 12, poor kid." Coran sighed. I mimicked him and he picked up the lamp, ready to swing it at me. I backed away and he stopped. We entered our machines again and I was clothed in a pink top, navy-blue skirt and red trainers. Coran was in hunting slacks, open-toed sandals and a khaki jumper. Once again, we both looked too old to be 18.

"You look fancy." He smiled to me, jokingly.

"And you look like Grandpa." I chuckled back. He gave me a playful swat. We just kept doing this until Clora walked in.

"Hello, dearies!" She beamed.

"I thought you were ill last night!" I gasped.

"I was. Got stung by a Tracker Jacker in the Rose Garden. But I'm healed now. I saw everything on the Capitol Infirmary Television. Teal did a great job. You and Coran looked amazing. I built the costume myself. Teal just made sure you could fit into it. I didn't want you to be too big for the costume, did I?" She cackled, thrusting a leaflet into my hand.

_CAPITOL DINNER PARTY TONIGHT! ALL TRIBUTES REQUIRED TO ATTEND AT 6:00 PM!_

I chuckled softly when I saw it.

"Now, I can tell you've been in the changing machines a couple of times today, but you'll have to get in it again at 5:15. I'll programme it so you enter the dinner party in only your best outfits. It's a very prestigious thing, you know. Everybody in the Capitol, including President Finchley, will be attending." Clora explained. She bustled past me, her yellow-skinned hand brushing against me. it really creeped me out. She didn't look...normal. She was wearing a different dress but, to me, she still looked like a Tracker Jacker.

And it gave me the creeps every time.


End file.
